Top 10 Veterans News from Around the Country 12-04-08

Today’s Local News for Veterans

What’s Inside  

1. VA Asks IOM To Review Gulf War Illness Findings.  
2. VA Sponsoring Event For Homeless Vets In Nebraska..  
3. Push On For New VA Hospital In Illinois 
4. Chronic Pain Said To Be A Problem For Veterans.  
5. National Guard Programs Seek To Boost Veterans’ Mental Health.  
6. Second Site Located For Paralyzed Iraq Vet’s Home.  
7. VA Data Shows New York Office Among Slowest To Process Claims.  
8. Report: Joint Inpatient EHR System Will Satisfy Nearly All Requirements For VA, DOD.  
9. Panel Proposes Medical Resident Training Changes.  
10. Money Raised By Cyber Cafes Benefiting ROTC Students, VA Hospitals. 

MTV to Air Documentary on Veterans Living with PTSD
On December 6 at 6pm EST, Music Television (MTV)  will air a one-hour documentary on Iraqi and Enduring Freedom veterans living with post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) through its “True Life” series. The veterans were followed and filmed in their homes and work places, and one veteran who receives mental health counseling was filmed and interviewed at the Memphis, Tennessee VA Medical Center.

HAVE YOU HEARD?
Veterans employed at the Kansas City VA Medical Center hit the big screen during Veterans Day. On November 10, photos of VA staff on the job now and “back then” in military uniform ran continuously on 42-inch plasma screens placed throughout the medical center. Employees and visitors loved the display, many impressed and surprised by their co-workers’ military accomplishments. In January, the display presentation will become permanent using smaller screens mounted in the main medical center lobby. A local church requested information about the video display so it can feature veterans from its congregation next Veterans Day.

1.      VA Asks IOM To Review Gulf War Illness Findings.   In continuing coverage, Federal Daily (12/3) reported the US Department of Veterans Affairs recently "announced it was seeking Institute of Medicine (IOM) review of advisory panel findings confirming research that a collection of symptoms known as Gulf War Illness (GWI) are real and require treatment." The "VA Research Advisory Committee on Gulf War Veterans’ Illnesses, an expert group empanelled by VA Secretary James B. Peake, issued its findings in October." In a statement, the VA "said…in a statement that it was asking IOM to review…the findings" before an official response is made.2.      VA Sponsoring Event For Homeless Vets In Nebraska.   The AP (12/3) reported, "The Department of Veterans Affairs Nebraska-Western Iowa Health Care System is sponsoring" a stand-down event for homeless veterans "at the Omaha Civic Center…on Saturday. The free services available that day will include health screening, eye exams, drug and alcohol counseling, mental health services and foot care." The VA "and other agencies and organizations will have representatives at the event."

      Similar Event Held In New York.   The WKTV-TV Utica, NY (12/3) website reported, "A group of local agencies are tackling the challenge of getting homeless veterans" homes and jobs. Recently, Utica’s Salvation Army was "the site of the third ‘Veteran’s Stand Down’ event. It’s a job fair with goals of linking" veterans "to health services offered through" the VA.
      Veterans Upset By Decision To Close Homeless Shelter.   In continuing coverage, the KXTV-TV Sacramento, CA (12/3, Massie) website reported, "Some Modesto military veterans" living at the Central Valley Homeless Veterans Shelter "are hoping for an early holiday gift." The shelter "is slated to close by Dec. 15," but, Terry, one of 10 veterans living there, "blames an announcement by shelter owner Marvis Hood, Jr. who talked to News 10 by phone. ‘I just can’t go any further. Only three of these guys are paying rent,’ Hood said." Terry, "who didn’t want his last name" used, "disputed Hood’s claim. ‘I’m paying rent and so are the others,’ he said." He added, "There’s still a good core group of guys here. … We’re…going to call the Veterans Administration and just try to find a way to make this work.’"
      Nonprofit Organization Proposes Apartment For Veterans In Milwaukee.   The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (12/3, Daykin) said the Center for Veterans Issues, a "nonprofit organization that helps military veterans," has "proposed an 80-unit apartment building for Milwaukee’s south side." The building proposed by the center, which receives funding from several federal agencies, including the VA, would use "federal tax credits given to developers who agree to lease apartments at below-market rents to people with lower incomes." The "project would compete with other proposals for tax credits, which are allocated by the Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Authority." The "city Plan Commission will review the proposal at its Monday meeting. It requires city zoning approval."

3.      Push On For New VA Hospital In Illinois.   The Braidwood (IL) Journal (12/3, Simon) reported Braidwood resident Jim Canup, "who serves as Commander of the American Legion Koca Post 39, has spearheaded a grass roots campaign" to establish a Veterans Affairs hospital in Will County. The facility would be located "on the current site of Silver Cross in Joliet, which is slated to move to a new campus in New Lenox in 2012. Canup is working with a slew of volunteers, including a committee made up of members of the American Legion, the 8th District of the VFW, members of the Disabled Veterans of America and members of the general public."

 4.      Chronic Pain Said To Be A Problem For Veterans.   The Honolulu Advertiser (12/3, Cole) reported, "As the Pentagon and Veterans Affairs scramble to deal with an increasing number of post-traumatic stress and traumatic brain injury cases from Iraq and Afghanistan, chronic pain from injuries of all types also is coming to the fore as yet another consequence of war that isn’t being fully addressed." Wounded troops "returning from Iraq and Afghanistan will likely overwhelm pain clinics, according" to the American Pain Foundation, but US Sen. Daniel K. Akaka (D-HI) "is among the advocates for veterans who have initiated legislation to counter shortfalls. The Veterans Pain Care Policy Act, introduced in the Senate by Akaka, along with the Military Pain Care Act introduced by another lawmaker, were signed into law…in October." The latter act "requires the Pentagon to implement a comprehensive pain-care program for active and retired military," while the Veterans Pain Care Act "calls for the establishment of a similar program within all VA facilities." The act also calls for the VA "to provide the necessary pain management for vets with long-term chronic pain disabilities."

5.      National Guard Programs Seek To Boost Veterans’ Mental Health.   McClatchy (12/4, Barrett) profiles Sgt. 1st Class Chad Stephens, a member of the North Carolina National Guard’s 30th Heavy Combat Brigade, which is being deployed for a second time to Iraq. Stephens, who was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder following his first Iraq deployment, "says the National Guard has worked hard to address the mental health problems that trouble him and thousands of other returning soldiers." The North Carolina National Guard, for example, "has begun two new programs to boost the mental health of its soldiers. One program, ‘Battlemind,’ tries to get soldiers thinking about how to deal with wartime experiences." Another "program, ‘Beyond the Yellow Ribbon,’ is borrowed from Minnesota and tries to help families and troops cope together with the stresses of war. It, too, is being developed in National Guards across the country."
      US Soldiers In Iraq Said To Be More Inclined To Seek Treatment At Combat Stress Centers.   AFP (12/3, Moutot) reported, "Traumatised by the battlefield or the anguish of divorce caused by long absence from home, many American troops in Iraq are increasingly shedding their macho image and visiting Combat Stress Clinics" which the US military opened after the "2003 invasion that ousted Saddam Hussein." The clinics draw "together psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers and specialist nurses in spacious buildings where troops" can be treated. The "Baghdad area clinic is near the airport at Camp Liberty, one of the world’s largest military bases and home to some 50,000 troops. Clinic commander Kevin Gormley told AFP" that the "stigma attached to mental health and to seeking some help in this matter has been largely reduced."

6.      Second Site Located For Paralyzed Iraq Vet’s Home.   The Hackensack (NJ) Record And Herald News (12/3, Yellin) reported, "A project to build a home for…paralyzed" Iraq veteran Visnu Gonzalez "is back on track after a new site has been located in the borough. This is the second attempt by the non-profit group Homes for Our Troops to construct a wheelchair-accessible home for…Gonzalez, who was wounded when a sniper’s bullet shot him down in 2004."

7.      VA Data Shows New York Office Among Slowest To Process Claims.   Newsday (12/4, Evans) reports, "The New York office of Veterans Affairs is among the slowest in the nation to process new disability claims, with local veterans languishing six months or longer in one of three cases." Only "the Detroit regional office, where 33.3 percent of claims take at least six months, processed claims slower than New York as of Nov. 15, according to VA data. New York, with 32.4 percent of claims taking that long, was tied with Pittsburgh for the nation’s second slowest processing center. The national average," meanwhile, "is 21 percent." Michael Walcoff, the VA’s deputy undersecretary of benefits, "said the agency is addressing the backlog at its Manhattan office by hiring about 30 veterans service representatives over the past 18 months."

8.      Report: Joint Inpatient EHR System Will Satisfy Nearly All Requirements For VA, DOD.   NextGov (12/3, Brewin) reported, "Development of a joint inpatient" electronic health records (EHRs) "system will satisfy almost all the requirements of the Defense and Veterans Affairs departments, according to a long sequestered report obtained by Nextgov." The report, which was "prepared by Booz Allen Hamilton in January, said Defense and VA share a common definition of an inpatient electronic health record and both share similar functional requirements to manage patient care." NextGov added, "A spokeswoman for the Military Health System said Defense and VA have not decided how to adopt the Booz Allen recommendations."

9.      Panel Proposes Medical Resident Training Changes.   The New York Times (12/3, A23, Parker-Pope) reported, "A national panel of medical experts proposed significant and costly changes for training new doctors in the nation’s hospitals, recommending mandatory sleep breaks and more structured shift changes to reduce the risk of fatigue-related errors." The panel’s report, "issued by the Institute of Medicine on Tuesday, focused on the grueling training of medical residents, the recent medical school graduates who care for patients under the supervision of a fully licensed physician." The "big question from the…report is whether medical schools and hospitals can afford the proposed changes, which may add as much as $1.7 billion in new costs." The panel "did not propose a financing source and said only that medical schools, hospitals, the Veterans Administration and other ‘stakeholders’ in graduate medical training should meet to discuss the issue." 

10.    Money Raised By Cyber Cafes Benefiting ROTC Students, VA Hospitals.   The Daytona Beach (FL) News-Journal (12/3, Parente) said 20 high school seniors enrolled in ROTC programs "were stunned to be handed certificates Tuesday morning for $3,000 each, courtesy of the Allied Veterans of the World Inc. & Affiliates National Cmdr. Johnny E. Duncan. The money came from Cyber Cafes — 22 of them operated in Florida by a management team for the veterans group," which has also aided Veterans Affairs hospitals. This year, "with funds from the cyber cafes, the organization," which was originally founded in 1979, "began making much bigger and wider donations. ‘All the donations they gave us are directly earmarked for patient care and patient needs. They helped us with the groundbreaking ceremony (for the new VA hospital) — $40,000,’ said Orlando VA Medical Center Chief of voluntary services Sandra Mayhle. More than $100,000 has been contributed, she said."